The present invention relates to an arrangement structure of an electricity-storage device which is installed to a vehicle.
Conventionally, it is known that an electricity-storage device to store the electricity, such as a rechargeable battery (a nickel metal hydride rechargeable battery, a nickel-cadmium rechargeable battery, a lithium-ion rechargeable battery, or a lead-acid battery, for example) is installed to a vehicle, such as an automotive vehicle. It is also known that a capacitor is used, in place of the rechargeable battery, as the electricity-storage device.
The above-described electricity-storage device is arranged in an engine room or a motor room (in a case in which a motor for driving an electric vehicle is arranged) in many cases. However, since the electricity-storage device (the capacitor, particularly) does not have the superior heat resistance, this device is preferably arranged at a specific place in the engine room where the temperature is as low as possible. Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2012-192890, for example, discloses that such an electricity-storage device is arranged at a front portion on the outside, in a vehicle width direction, of a front side frame.
Herein, it is preferable that a heavy object be positioned as close to the gravity center of the vehicle as possible, particularly be arranged within a wheel base between a front wheel and a rear wheel, considering the motional performances of the vehicle (the maneuverability and stability, the turning performance). In this sense, there is yet room for improvement in the structure like the one disclosed in the above-described patent document, in which the electricity-storage device that is a kind of the heavy object is arranged at a front end portion of the front side frame.
It may be considered that the electricity-storage device is arranged in back of a front tire so as to be located within the wheel base as described above. In this case, however, the arrangement position of the electricity-storage device is so close to the engine or the like that the electricity-storage device improperly receives the influence of heat as described above. Herein, it may be considered in order to solve this problem that a screen plate and a slit are provided at an engine-room-side face of a wheel house which covers over a front tire to properly exhaust the heat inside the engine room to the outside, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2012-236570, for example. In this case, however, the screen plate protrudes toward the inside of the engine room so greatly that the space efficiency may be deteriorated. Further, it may be difficult to apply this structure to a compact car, such as a sports car equipped with a wide tire, in which the engine room is not spacious.